By Hanne Fair

A number of years ago when computers first began to make their way into our day-to-day lives, there was speculation that books would one day become obsolete. Much as we rely on computers for our work, and for the wonderful wealth of information that they can access, there is a special kind of satisfaction that comes from the world of books. Here at James Bay Community Project we are fortunate enough to have a community library right in our building at 547 Michigan Street. This is not a full-service library in the sense of having extensive reference and research capabilities, but our small library offers many benefits nonetheless.

The Community Library has thousands of books: fiction, mysteries, children’s, audio, travel, cooking, biographies and large print volumes. The volunteers speak proudly of the wide range of reading materials. Each week many new books are donated by generous community members. Thanks to a partnership with the City of Victoria and the Greater Victoria Public Library, 800 new books are rotated in every six months to ensure a fresh supply of the latest mysteries as well as old standbys. A wall of health care books (carefully checked by a volunteer nurse to be current) provides up to date health information on a wide variety of topics. There is also a good supply of audiotapes and CDs of books, personal development, and music. A computer is available for community use or for free one-to-one lessons with a volunteer tutor who can teach you to use the internet or email family members.

Avid members of the Book Club meet on the second Thursday of each month. We are trying to encourage more children to come into the library to create opportunities for reading and intergenerational relationships, and have books and videos particularly for children. For the next few months we will have a practicum student from UVIC who will be developing some enjoyable activities in our family programs that encourage reading and related activities. The Library is open Monday - Friday 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. and is available to everyone. You may borrow hard covers, audio books and videos if you have a Greater Victoria Public Library card. A library card is not required to borrow paperbacks.

You are welcome to come and chat even if you don’t take out a book. The volunteers are always available for a conversation, to help you find a book, and to keep the library organized for easy use by the patrons. Our volunteers enjoy getting to know people from the community so the Library is a pleasant destination spot. Come and meet some of our 40 volunteers, who include retired teachers, librarians, nurses, and a RAF fighter pilot. They have many and varied interests such as gardening, crafts, birding, walking, movies, music, travelling, and history. You may even find that you would like to join our wonderful team of volunteers!

Thanks to the generous donations of books from the community we have hundreds of duplicates, (many almost new and current) that we do not have space for, so we are offering them for sale on February 2, 2008 at the James Bay New Horizons building at 234 Menzies Street from 10:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Paperbacks will be 50 cents to $1.00 and hard covers $1.00 to $2.00. We hope to see you there!